Improved jointed scull-propeller



UNITED STATES PATENT OEEICE.

C. DANN, OF BUSHFORD, MINNESOTA.

IMPROVED JOINTED SCU LL-PROPELLER.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 37,856. dated March 10,1863.

To all whom, t may concern:

Be it known that 1, O. DANN, of Rushford, in the county of Fillmore andState ofMinnesota, have invented a new and Improved JointedSeidl-Propeller; and I do hereby declare -that the following isl a full,clear, and exact description of the same, reference being had to theaccompanying drawings, forming a p lrt of this specification, in which-Figure 1 represents a longitudinal vertical section of my invention.Fig. 2 is a plan or top View of the same.

Similar letters of reference in both views indicate corresponding parts.

The object of this invention is an improvement in that class ofpropellers n which an oscillating blade, suspended from a rising andfalling rod, and operating either in a tube or channel or submergedunder water, is employed, and which are commonly designatedscull-propellers.77

The invention consists in the arrangement ot' two or more blades jointedto each other and suspended by suitable rods from a beam or beams hungeccentrically upon a pivot fastened in the loose ends of oscillatingarms in such a manner that each blade acts separately, one after theother, on the water, being heldin position by the other blade, to whichit is jointed, and thereby a powerful current of water in the desireddirection is created.

It consists, further, in the arrangement of a slot in the beam or beamsfrom which the sculling-blades are suspended, in combination with thepivot from which said beams are suspended, and with the sculling-blades,in such a manner that by shifting said beam or beams from one end of theslot to the other the action of the sculling-blades is reversed, and thepropeller can be made to act in either direction at pleasure.

To enable others skilled in the art to make and use my invention, I willproceed to describe it with reference to the drawings.

A A represent two blades, of wood or any other suitable material, whichare jointed together by means of a pivot, c. The blade A is suspended bymeans of one or more rods or pitmen, B, from the end or ends of a beamor beams, and the blade A by one or more rods or pitmen, B', from theopposite end or ends of said beam or beams, as clearly shown in thedrawings, where each blade is suspended by two rods from the ends of twobeams. The rods B B are connected to the blades by suitable means inabout the middle of the length of each blade, and the beams C aresuspended eccentrically or at points nearer to one of their ends than tothe other from a pivot, c, which is secured in the loose ends of arms D,that are rigidly attached to and oscillate with a rock-shaft, E. Thisrock-shaft shall have any suitable bearings, and it is moved by steam orother competent power. If the oscillating arms move in the direction ofthe arrow marked near one or them in Fig. 1, the sculling-blade A, beingsuspended from points nearer to the fulcrum than the blade A', isactuated iirst, and its loose end turns up in the circle 1, until itspoint touches the top of the tube or channel G, the jointed end of saidblade being retained by the pressure of the water to which it isexposed, and which is larger than that acting on the loose end. When thepoint of the blade A touches the top of the channel G, it forms thefulcrum on which the inner or jointed end of said blade turns up in thecircle 2, carrying with it the jointed or inner end ofthe blade A', theouter or loose end of said blade being still retained by the pressure ofwater actingon it. After the jointed ends of the blades have reached thetop of the channel, and if the motion of the arms D still furtherproceeds, the point of the plate A' is turned up in the circle 3. Whenthe motion of the arms D is reversed, the point of the blade A turnsdown first, then the inner or jointed ends of both blades, and the pointof the blade A last. In following these different motions of thesculling-blades, it will be noticed that in every case the water ise'xpelled from the tube in the direction of the arrow marked in the samein Fig. 1. The pivot c, from which the beams C are suspended, works inslots c in said beams. These slots extend to an equal distance on eitherside of the center ofthe beams, and by moving said beams from one end ofthe slots to the other the motion of the sculling-blades is reversed,that blade the point of suspension of which is nearest to the fulcrumpinc commencing to move first. By referring to Fig. l ofthe drawings itwill be noticed that by raising the point of the blade A iirst the wateris expelled from the tube in the direction opposite to the arrow markedin the same, and consequently the motion of. the vessel to Whichthepropeller may be attached can be reversed. In practice the beams will beprovided With a suitable attachment Whereby the same can be shifted onthe pivot c, whether the mechanism be in motion or at rest, and thus theengineer Will have perfect control over the motion of thescullingblades.

It is obvious that instead of two any other number of blades may bejointed together to produce a propeller.

What I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. The arrangement of the jointed blades n Witnesses:

A A', in combination with the beams'G, "suspended eccentrically from apivot, c, in the loose ends of oscillating arms D, all constructed andoperating substantially as and for the purpose shown and described. Y

2. The arrangement of the slots c inthe beams C, in combination with thepivot c on the oscillating arms D, and with the scullingblades A A',constructed -and operating substantially in the manner and for thepurpose herein specied.

C. DANN.

HIRAM WALKER, JosEPH Oris.

